History of Southeast Asia

Thanks for making Southeast Asian history interesting and easy to digest. I have a better appreciation for the history, it’s geopolitical situation today, and how a nation’s memory of the past affects its decisions today in trade and politics. I especially appreciate your efforts in clearing up self serving version of history that we grew up hearing and learning. Asia didn’t need to be discovered by the West, Becos it was already there and had advanced societies, art and culture that rivaled Europe’s. Far from being backwards, SEA has gone thru a long history of migration and evolution, it’s peoples and culture intertwined. And one cannot understand todays geopolitics without understanding the past. Thanks Charles for sharing your knowledge and research so generously and honestly. I hope more people listen to your podcast to better understand our region and how our various cultures intertwine. And instead of glorifying what foreign powers are doing in our region, understand why our history gives us pause of “nice entreaties”, and take a balanced view of what’s playing out. SEA nations have obviously gone down this path before from the 14th century to the 20th, and do not want a repeat of history in the 21st century. Great stuff and keep it coming. Will do my part to keep the lights on.

Hi Charles! Have just discovered your huge podcast collection - really fascinating and well put together - will try and catch up, although will take a while!

Hi Charles, thank you so much for this podcast. I am a Chinese national living in Singapore and i have always been curious to learn about the History of Southeast Asia, especially that I have been living here for 10 year and travelled quite a lot in this region. My perception has also changed a lot since, I start to understand that Southeast Asians are not made up of an uniform racial/cultural group but consists of people with very diverse background and interesting history. Each of their story is worth listening to. This podcast is really informative and engaging at the same time. Though sometimes it is hard to imagine the past glories of places when I visit places like Malaka, Penang, Banda Aceh, Jakarta nowadays (most of the relics are either destroyed or have lost its importance), this podcast adds very interesting perspectives to understand the past and current national/racial narratives of the region. I definitely feel more attached this region and wish to travel even more. Really a big thank to you!

Pretty comprehensive overview of our regional history. Painstaking research must have been undertaken. Thank you !